Yang Ming is planning to order 20,000 teu containerships for the first time, reversing its conservative stance on ‘megamax’ vessels.
The Taiwanese liner operator’s chairman, Dr Tsai Feng-ming, said on Friday Yang Ming planned to expand its fleet by up to 1.3m teu by 2032,a move that would include building 20,000 teu ships.
Dr Tsai noted that Yang Ming was the only member of the Premier Alliance without vessels of this size, meaning it could not enjoy the reduced unit costs from transporting more boxes.
He said: “We have developed a shipbuilding plan for the medium-to-long-term, and this will be submitted to our directors for discussion. Our goal is to have a fleet of 1.1m to 1.3m teu by 2032, a 60% growth from our current fleet.”
Yang Ming’s fleet, of 711,393 teu, comprises 59 owned and 39 chartered ships, is now ranked 10th among liner operators, according to Alphaliner. In April last year, less zealous than its peers in expanding its fleet during the pandemic, it was overtaken by Israel’s Zim Line.
The largest ships in Yang Ming’s fleet are 15,000 teu. In March, it announced it would acquire up to six 8,000 teu and up to seven 15,000 teu ships; five 15,500 teu vessels are under construction at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries for delivery next year.
And Dr Tsai added that he wanted to strengthen the company’s position among the top 10 liner operators.
He said: “Container shipping demand to South America, the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent is growing. We need to add capacity to these markets too. Cargo volumes have grown significantly and we need to grab market share.”
Meanwhile, Yang Ming’s compatriot, Wan Hai Lines, has been more aggressive in ordering newbuildings and is eyeing Yang Ming’s 10th spot in the ranks. It has 34 ships of 381,716 teu on order and, with its owned fleet of 515,164 teu, is closing in.
